Start a New Chapter by Creating Flowers from Books

Give a Goodwill-found book a new chapter by upcycling its pages into paper roses.  This easy DIY project creates elegant flowers and buds that are perfect to embellish items as gifts for Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, birthdays, and more. 

Pick up books for a dollar or two at Goodwill, then follow simple steps that will make your heart and smile bloom, as well as those who receive your repurposed paper posies!

You are invited to join us on February 11 for our “Not Your Typical Typical Valentine’s Day” event. During this time, you will make your own bouquet of flowers, jewelry, and cards from repurposed and upcycled items. More details are coming very soon!

Step 1: Pull out some pages, cut out some circles

Begin your blooms by removing four or five pages from a book.  Keeping the pages on top of each other, use a round object like a small plate or glass to trace a circle on the top page.  Based on the size of your traced item, you might be able to get two circles on a page.

Holding the pages securely, cut out your circle(s). Do your best to keep the cut circles stacked on top of each other.

Step 2: Clip a spiral in each cut circle

Hold your four-to-five-page layers and cut them into a circle. Starting at the outer edge, use your scissors to cut along the edge and slowly work your way toward the center.  You will have one ongoing cut, which will create a spiral slice.  Carefully separate your stacked and spiraled circles.

Step 3: Start from the outer edge and roll away

Pick up one of your book page spiral cut circles.  Starting at the outer edge/the first cut you made, clip away the pointed shape so you have a squared-off edge.  Starting with this squared-off edge, add a dot of hot glue to hold it in place, then start to roll it around the rest of your cut circle.  

This will create a cone-shaped roll of paper; place the cone’s point (the base of the flower) in your hand.  Using your fingers, allow the rolled paper to unfurl slightly, giving your bloom some shape and size.  Now, the center of your circle is the outermost bloom; add glue to it and put your unfurled bloom’s bottom side into it.  The hot glue will help to hold the bottom pedal in place and allow the other pedals to touch the glue and stay in place, too.

As always, be careful with the hot glue, especially if you have little artists or DIYers helping with this project!

Step 4: Don’t leave out a leaf

Fold over a couple of book pages and cut a curve-shape/half-circle with the fold in the center.  These will become your paper rose leaves, and folding them will help give them some dimension, too.

Step 5: Make blooms, create art, embellish items

Now that you have a plethora of paper roses and some leaves on hand, it’s time to add them to other items to blossom some charm and whimsy.  Here are some of the many ideas:

1.      Make blooming flowers

Use a wooden skewer as your flower’s stem.  Poke the pointed end through the top of the flower and push it most of the way through then add a dot of hot glue on top.  Push it further so the skewer is hidden among the pedals and so the glue touches the paper, keeping the bloom on top.  Add a pair of leaves with more hot glue.  Add paper roses to small bud vases, often found at Goodwill, too.

2.      Create heart art

Keeping with the repurposing/reusing them, cut out cardboard squares.  Fold a book page in half then clip out a pointed, half-circle shape and fold it open to reveal your heart.  Apply a light and solid layer of school glue (not hot glue) to the back of the heart, and then place it in the center of your cardboard canvas.  Now , use your glue gun to hot glue a paper flower and a leaf or two on top. 

3.      Embellish thrifted items

As you can see from this blog’s photos, paper flowers and leaves were hot glued along the edge of a small lamp’s shade.  Another flower was added to the lamp’s base to connect the two.  Lovely!  

Small vases and a mason jar also got the blooming treatment by securing paper roses on them.  

A small picture frame became an art piece, too, by discarding the glass, adding colorful paper, and securing a bouquet on top using hot glue. Pretty, pretty!  

What items might you pick up at Goodwill to add paper posies too?

Again, you are invited to join us on February 11 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Brookland Arts Walk’s Artist’s Lounge, 716 Monroe Street NE.  We are so excited to co-host this “Not Your Typical Typical Valentine’s Day” event with several amazing groups.  

You will create your own flowers, jewelry, and cards using upcycled materials. Bring materials to use, share, and swap with others!  Come solo, with a friend, or with your boo! See you there!

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Tim Kime

Artist, Motivational Speaker, Life Coach

Tim Kime is an artist, life coach, and connector. He is the President of Kime Leadership Associates, offering executive coaching, meeting facilitating, and motivational speaking. He is also the Chief Creative Force of Transformation Junkies which upcycles furniture and other household items into functional works of art. He combined his two passions—unleashing the potential in people and transforming items with the launch of the Art of Possibilities Workshops. These workshops are part upcycling, part dreaming, and part goal setting.